Hillary Clinton (born 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, lawyer,
and writer. She was First Lady of the United States from 1993 to 2001, a
U.S. senator from New York from 2001 to 2009, and the 67th secretary of
state from 2009 to 2013. As a Democrat running in the 2016 presidential
election, she became the first woman to receive the nomination of a
major U.S. political party. Clinton was raised in the Chicago suburb of
Park Ridge. She graduated from Wellesley College, and in 1973 earned a
law degree from Yale, where she met future president Bill Clinton; they
married in 1975. She was appointed the first female chair of the Legal
Services Corporation in 1978. As U.S. secretary of state in the Obama
administration, Clinton helped organize international sanctions against
Iran in an effort to curtail that country's nuclear program, leading to
the multinational Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action agreement in 2015.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Clinton>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1858:
The first of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen
A. Douglas (both pictured), candidates for an Illinois seat in the U.S.
Senate, was held in Ottawa.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lincoln%E2%80%93Douglas_debates>
1944:
World War II: A combined Canadian–Polish force captured the
strategically important town of Falaise, France, in the final offensive
of the Battle of Normandy.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Tractable>
1963:
The Army of the Republic of Vietnam Special Forces raided and
vandalised Buddhist pagodas across the country, arresting thousands and
leaving hundreds dead.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X%C3%A1_L%E1%BB%A3i_Pagoda_raids>
1969:
An Australian tourist set the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem on
fire, a major catalyst of the formation of the Organisation of Islamic
Cooperation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Aqsa_Mosque>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
anhedonic:
(psychiatry, also figuratively) Showing anhedonia; having no capacity to
feel pleasure.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/anhedonic>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
We uncovered new forces, we took a step along what may be an
endless path toward divinity, we redirected the entire thrust of
psychoanalytic theory, and, as with all knowledge, we found that deeper
and more compelling mysteries yet lay beyond those we had reduced to the
security of fact.
--Lucius Shepard
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Lucius_Shepard>
The Marchioness disaster was a collision between two vessels on the
River Thames in London in the early hours of 20 August 1989 that
resulted in the deaths of 51 people. The pleasure steamer Marchioness,
with about 130 people on board, sank after being hit twice by the
dredger Bowbelle. The Marine Accident Investigation Branch blamed a lack
of lookouts, but it was criticised by the families of the victims for
failing to interview anyone on Marchioness or Bowbelle. A formal inquiry
was finally held in 2000; its report concluded that "The basic cause of
the collision is clear. It was poor lookout on both vessels. Neither
vessel saw the other in time to take action to avoid the collision."
Further criticism was aimed at the owners of both ships, at the
Department for Transport and at the Port of London Authority. The
collision and the subsequent reports led to increased safety measures on
the Thames, and four new lifeboat stations were installed on the river.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marchioness_disaster>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1707:
The first Siege of Pensacola came to an end with the British
and Creek abandoning their attempt to capture Pensacola in Spanish
Florida.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Pensacola_%281707%29>
1920:
The American Professional Football Association, a predecessor
of the National Football League, was founded.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Football_League>
1988:
The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army bombed a
bus carrying British Army soldiers in Northern Ireland, killing eight of
them and wounding another twenty-eight.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballygawley_bus_bombing>
1989:
The final stage of the O-Bahn Busway in Adelaide, South
Australia, was completed, becoming the world's longest and fastest
guided busway with buses (example pictured) travelling a total of 12 km
(7.5 mi) at maximum speeds of up to 100 km/h (62 mph).
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O-Bahn_Busway>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
gamin:
(dated, also attributively) A homeless boy; a male street urchin; also
(more generally), a cheeky, street-smart boy.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gamin>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The behavioral and cognitive disciplines are leading the way to a
more valid framework for all science. Although the theoretic changes
make little difference in physics, chemistry, molecular biology, and so
on, they are crucial for the behavioral, social, and human sciences.
They don't change the analytic, reductive methodology, just the
interpretations and conclusions.
--Roger Wolcott Sperry
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Roger_Wolcott_Sperry>
The Australian women's national wheelchair basketball team played in the
2012 Summer Paralympics in London. The wheelchair basketball team, known
as the Gliders, included nine Paralympic veterans, Bridie Kean, Amanda
Carter, Sarah Stewart, Tina McKenzie, Kylie Gauci, Katie Hill, Cobi
Crispin, Clare Nott and Shelley Chaplin (pictured), along with three
newcomers, Amber Merritt, Sarah Vinci and Leanne Del Toso. The team had
won silver in Sydney and Athens, but never gold. The Gliders faced a
formidable task just to make the finals, as their round-robin pool
included Brazil, Great Britain, Canada and the Netherlands. After a
narrow victory over Brazil, and an easier one against Great Britain, the
Gliders were defeated by Canada, but won their final match against the
Netherlands to finish at the top of their pool. They went on to win the
quarterfinal against Mexico and the semifinal against the United States,
but lost to Germany in the final, winning silver.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia_women%27s_national_wheelchair_baske…>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1934:
A referendum supported the recent merging of the posts of
Chancellor and President of Germany, consolidating Adolf Hitler's
assumption of supreme power.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1934_German_referendum>
1964:
More than 17,000 fans saw the Beatles at the Cow Palace in Daly
City, California, on the opening date of the group's first nationwide
U.S. tour.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatlemania#First_visit_to_the_US_and_Ed_Sull…>
2002:
The single deadliest helicopter crash took place when a team of
Chechen separatists brought down a Russian Mil Mi-26 with a man-portable
air-defense system, resulting in 127 deaths.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Khankala_Mi-26_crash>
2017:
Around 250,000 farmed non-native Atlantic salmon were
accidentally released into the wild near Cypress Island, Washington.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cypress_Island_Atlantic_salmon_pen_break>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
Palladian:
1. (Greek mythology, rare) Of or relating to Pallas, an epithet of
Athena, the goddess of wisdom.
2. (by extension, rare) Of or relating to knowledge, study, or wisdom.
[...]
3. (architecture) In the style of the Italian neoclassical architect
Andrea Palladio.
4. (architecture) An architect who designs buildings in the Palladian
style.
5. (architecture) A building or an architectural element (for example, a
window) designed in the Palladian style.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Palladian>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
I am forced, as I have often said, to try to make myself laugh,
that I may not cry: for one or other I must do.
--Samuel Richardson
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Samuel_Richardson>
Trafford Park is an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford,
Greater Manchester, England, opposite Salford Quays on the southern side
of the Manchester Ship Canal, 3.4 miles (5.5 km) southwest of
Manchester city centre. Until the late 19th century, it was the
ancestral home of the Trafford family, who sold it to financier Ernest
Terah Hooley in 1896. It was the first planned industrial estate in the
world and remains the largest in Europe, at 4.7 square miles (12 km2).
Trafford Park was a major supplier of materiel in the First and Second
World Wars, producing the Rolls-Royce Merlin engines used to power both
the Spitfire and the Lancaster. At its peak in 1945, an estimated
75,000 workers were employed in the park. Employment began to decline
in the 1960s as companies closed in favour of newer, more efficient
plants elsewhere. The new Manchester Metrolink line from Pomona to the
Trafford Centre is under construction.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trafford_Park>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1612:
The trial of the Pendle and Samlesbury witches, among the most
famous of England's witch trials, began at the assizes in Lancaster.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samlesbury_witches>
1877:
American astronomer Asaph Hall discovered Phobos, the larger of
Mars's two moons, six days after discovering Deimos, the smaller one.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phobos_%28moon%29>
1964:
Hildegard Trabant was killed while attempting to cross the
Berlin Wall, making her the only person known to have been loyal to East
Germany who was killed at the wall.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hildegard_Trabant>
1989:
Leading Colombian presidential candidate Luis Carlos Galán was
assassinated during a public demonstration in the town of Soacha,
Cundinamarca.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_Carlos_Gal%C3%A1n>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
disquisition:
1. (archaic) A methodical inquiry or investigation.
2. A lengthy, formal discourse that analyses or explains some topic;
(loosely) a dissertation or treatise.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/disquisition>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Part of my lifestyle you should all remember is having fun. Being
funny is a big part of it. After all, if one is in tune, funny is the
tune to play. Giving laughter is more fun than giving advice. Giving
laughter while giving advice is the jackpot.
--Peter Fonda
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Peter_Fonda>
Paraceratherium was a hornless rhinoceros, and one of the largest
terrestrial mammals that has ever existed. The genus lived during most
of the Oligocene epoch (34–23 million years ago); its remains have
been found across Eurasia between China and the Balkans. Its weight is
estimated to have been 15 to 20 tonnes (33,000 to 44,000 lb); the
shoulder height was about 4.8 metres (15.7 feet), and the length about
7.4 metres (24.3 feet). The legs were long and pillar-like. The long
neck supported a skull that was about 1.3 metres (4.3 ft) long. It had
large, tusk-like incisors and a nasal incision that suggests it had a
prehensile upper lip or trunk. The lifestyle of Paraceratherium may have
been similar to that of large mammals such as elephants and modern
rhinoceroses. It was a browser, eating mainly leaves, soft plants, and
shrubs. It lived in habitats ranging from arid deserts with scattered
trees to subtropical forests.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraceratherium>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1959:
Kind of Blue by Miles Davis, one of the best selling and most
critically acclaimed jazz recordings of all time, was released.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kind_of_Blue>
1969:
Hurricane Camille struck the Mississippi coast of the United
States, killing 259 people and causing $1.42 billion in damages.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Camille>
1999:
A 7.6 Mw earthquake struck northwestern Turkey, killing more
than 17,000 people and leaving approximately half a million people
homeless.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1999_%C4%B0zmit_earthquake>
2009:
A turbine at Russia's Sayano-Shushenskaya Dam in Khakassia
broke apart violently, flooding the power station, causing widespread
power failures and killing 75 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Sayano-Shushenskaya_power_station_accide…>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
fatberg:
A large accumulation of fat and discarded toiletries which clogs sewers.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/fatberg>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Religion now had to have its compartment, almost its social
place. The frontier had ceased to exist. And the religions it had bred
were beginning slowly to die. In the old days, when men, often of little
education, had needed only to declare themselves ministers, people would
have seen themselves reflected in the expounders of the Word. This
quality of homespun would have made the religions appear creations of a
community, personal and close and inviolable. Now a certain distance was
needed.
--V. S. Naipaul
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/V._S._Naipaul>
Kalidas is a lost 1931 Indian biographical film directed by H. M. Reddy
and produced by Ardeshir Irani. No print, gramophone record, or songbook
of the film is known to survive. It was the first sound film to be made
in South India and the first in Tamil, with additional dialogue in
Telugu and Hindi. Based on the life of the Sanskrit poet Kālidāsa, it
featured P. G. Venkatesan in the title role and T. P. Rajalakshmi as the
female lead, with L. V. Prasad, Thevaram Rajambal, T. Susheela Devi, J.
Sushila, and M. S. Santhanalakshmi in supporting roles. It was shot in
Mumbai on the sets of India's first sound film Alam Ara (1931) and was
completed in eight days. Despite its mythological theme, the film
featured songs from modern times, including the compositions of Carnatic
musician Tyagaraja, publicity songs of the Indian National Congress, and
songs about Mahatma Gandhi and the Indian independence movement.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalidas_%28film%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1819:
In Manchester, England, 15 people were killed and 400 to 700
others injured when cavalry charged into a crowd (depiction shown)
demanding the reform of parliamentary representation.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peterloo_Massacre>
1891:
San Sebastian Church in Manila, the only all-steel church in
Asia, was officially consecrated.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Sebastian_Church_%28Manila%29>
1906:
An estimated 8.2 MW earthquake hit Valparaíso, Chile, killing
3,882 people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1906_Valpara%C3%ADso_earthquake>
2009:
At the World Championships in Athletics in Berlin, Usain Bolt
ran the 100 metres in 9.58 seconds, breaking his own record set a year
earlier.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usain_Bolt>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
pie-eyed:
1. (informal, originally US) With one's eyes wide open and staring in an
expressionless manner; wide-eyed.
2. (informal, by extension) (Extremely) drunk or intoxicated.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pie-eyed>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
As it is always darkest just before the day dawneth, so God useth
to visit His servants with greatest afflictions when he intendeth their
speedy advancement.
--Thomas Fuller
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Thomas_Fuller>
Bernard Fanning (born 15 August 1969) is an Australian musician and
singer-songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer and frontman of
Queensland alternative rock band Powderfinger. Born and raised in
Toowong, Brisbane, he began writing music at 15. With Ian Haug, John
Collins, and Darren Middleton, the band released five studio albums in
fifteen years and achieved mainstream success in Australia. During
Powderfinger's hiatus in 2005, Fanning began his solo music career with
the studio album Tea & Sympathy. Powderfinger reunited in 2007 and
released two more albums before disbanding in 2010. While Powderfinger's
style focuses on alternative rock, Fanning's solo music is generally
described as a mixture of blues and acoustic folk. He plays guitar,
piano, keyboards and harmonica. Often speaking out against Australian
political figures, Fanning has donated much of his time to philanthropic
causes.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernard_Fanning>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1261:
Michael VIII Palaiologos (depiction shown) was crowned
Byzantine emperor in Constantinople.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_VIII_Palaiologos>
1915:
The New York World revealed that Germany had purchased excess
phenol from Thomas Edison that could be used to make explosives for the
Allied war effort and diverted it to Bayer for aspirin production.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Phenol_Plot>
1944:
World War II: Allied forces began their invasion of southern
France.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Dragoon>
1998:
A car bomb attack carried out by the Real Irish Republican Army
killed 29 people and injured approximately 220 others in Omagh, Northern
Ireland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omagh_bombing>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
neroli:
More fully neroli oil or oil of neroli: an essential oil distilled from
the blossoms of the bitter orange or Seville orange (Citrus × aurantium
subsp. amara) used to make perfumes.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/neroli>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
Indian religion has always felt that since the minds, the
temperaments and the intellectual affinities of men are unlimited in
their variety, a perfect liberty of thought and of worship must be
allowed to the individual in his approach to the Infinite.
--Sri Aurobindo
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sri_Aurobindo>
The Sega Genesis, or Mega Drive, is a 16-bit home video game console
developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the
successor to the Master System. Released in Japan in 1988, in North
America in 1989, and worldwide in 1990, it was adapted from Sega's
System 16 arcade system board, with a Motorola 68000 processor and a
Zilog Z80 sound controller chip. In Japan, the Mega Drive fared poorly
against its two main competitors, Nintendo's Super Nintendo
Entertainment System and NEC's PC Engine. The Genesis achieved
considerable success in North America, Brazil, and Europe, thanks to its
library of arcade game ports, the popularity of Sega's Sonic the
Hedgehog series, several popular sports franchises, and aggressive youth
marketing. It was succeeded in 1994 by the Sega Saturn. More than 30
million first-party Genesis units were sold worldwide..
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sega_Saturn>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1973:
The current Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
came into effect.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_Pakistan>
1975:
The Rocky Horror Picture Show premiered in Los Angeles, the
first in its record-breaking run in cinemas, which continues in limited
release.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rocky_Horror_Picture_Show>
2007:
Four coordinated suicide bomb attacks detonated in the Yazidi
communities of Qahtaniya and Jazeera, Iraq, killing an estimated 796
people and wounding 1,562 others.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Yazidi_communities_bombings>
2018:
The Ponte Morandi bridge collapsed in Genoa, Italy, killing 43
people.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Morandi>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
en masse:
In a single body or group; as one, together.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/en_masse>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The seeing of things as they really are — the seeing of a
proportion veiled from other eyes (together with the power of
expression), is what makes a man an artist. What makes him a great
artist is a high fervour of spirit, which produces a superlative,
instead of a comparative, clarity of vision.
--John Galsworthy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Galsworthy>
Henry Burrell (13 August 1904 – 9 February 1988) was a senior
commander in the Royal Australian Navy. During the 1920s and 1930s, he
served for several years on exchange with the Royal Navy, specialising
as a navigator. Following the outbreak of World War II, he filled a key
liaison post with the US Navy, and later saw action as commander of the
destroyer HMAS Norman, earning a mention in despatches. Promoted
captain in 1946, Burrell commanded the flagship HMAS Australia in
1948–49. He captained the light aircraft carrier HMAS Vengeance in
1953–54, and was twice Flag Officer of the Australian Fleet. As Chief
of the Naval Staff from 1959 to 1962, he began a major program of
acquisitions for the Navy, including new helicopters, minesweepers,
submarines and guided-missile destroyers. In 1959 Burrell was appointed
a Companion of the Order of the Bath and was raised to vice admiral. He
was knighted in 1960 and retired two years later.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Burrell_%28admiral%29>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1650:
General George Monck founded "Monck's Regiment of Foot", the
predecessor to the Coldstream Guards, the oldest regiment in the British
Regular Army in continuous active service.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coldstream_Guards>
1898:
Spanish–American War: After a mock battle for Manila, the
Spanish commander surrendered to the United States in order to keep the
city out of the hands of Filipino rebels.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Manila_%281898%29>
1999:
The Act on National Flag and Anthem was adopted in Japan,
formally establishing the flag of Japan (design illustrated) as the
national flag and "Kimigayo" as the national anthem.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Act_on_National_Flag_and_Anthem>
2004:
Hurricane Charley struck the U.S. state of Florida, just
22 hours after Tropical Storm Bonnie inflicted its own damage to the
state.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Charley>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
meteorwrong:
(humorous) A rock that is believed to be a meteorite, but is in fact
terrestrial in origin; a pseudometeorite.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/meteorwrong>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
The condition of all progress is experience. We go wrong a
thousand times before we find the right path. We struggle, and grope,
and hurt ourselves until we learn the use of things, and this is true of
things spiritual as well as of material things. Pain is unavoidable, but
it acquires a new and higher meaning when we perceive that it is the
price humanity must pay for an invaluable good.
--Felix Adler
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Felix_Adler>
Hurricane Nadine was the fourth-longest-lived Atlantic hurricane on
record. The fourteenth tropical cyclone and named storm of the 2012
Atlantic hurricane season, it developed from a tropical wave west of
Cape Verde on September 10. By the following day, it had strengthened
into a tropical storm. Well away from any landmass, Nadine reached
hurricane status on September 15. Two days later, the storm began
moving northeastward toward the Azores, producing tropical-storm-force
winds on a few islands, but on September 19 it veered east-
southeastward before reaching them. On September 21 Nadine transitioned
into a non-tropical low pressure area. Its remnants regenerated into a
tropical cyclone on September 24 and became a hurricane again on
September 28. After transitioning into an extratropical cyclone, the
remnants of Nadine passed through the Azores on October 4 and again
brought strong winds to the islands.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Nadine>
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1914:
World War I: Belgian forces were victorious in Halen but were
ultimately unable to stop the German invasion of their kingdom.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Halen>
1945:
An official administrative history (cover pictured) of the
Manhattan Project, written by American physicist Henry DeWolf Smyth, was
released just days after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smyth_Report>
1981:
The IBM Personal Computer, the original version and progenitor
of the IBM PC compatible hardware platform, was introduced.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_Personal_Computer>
_____________________________
Wiktionary's word of the day:
sericulture:
(agriculture) The rearing of silkworms for the production of silk.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sericulture>
___________________________
Wikiquote quote of the day:
To others, being wrong is a source of shame; to me, recognizing
my mistakes is a source of pride. Once we realize that imperfect
understanding is the human condition, there is no shame in being wrong,
only in failing to correct our mistakes.
--George Soros
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/George_Soros>